Impact of Scribe Experience on Undergraduate Medical Education
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SHORT COMMUNICATION
Impact of Scribe Experience on Undergraduate Medical Education William H. Hewlett 1
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& Christopher M. Woleben & Jacob Alford & Sally A. Santen & Peter Buckley & Moshe Feldman
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# International Association of Medical Science Educators 2020, corrected publication 2020
Abstract Medical scribes have become a common fixture in healthcare, but little is known about the impact of a scribe experience on medical school performance. The objective of this study was to determine the frequency of scribe experience for medical students and impact on performance. Thirty-four percent of students were scribes prior to medical school. The majority of scribes felt their scribe experience helped them during their pre-clerkship curriculum. However, there were no significant differences in USMLE Step 1 scores, pre-clerkship class rank, post-encounter note grades, and wellbeing between students with and without scribe experience. Keywords Medical scribe . Scribing . Medical school performance
Background Medical scribing, one type of clinical experience, has become common in the US healthcare ecosystem to support providers in a variety of settings [1–3] and is an increasingly sought out position by potential medical school applicants. Medical scribes work with physicians during patient interviews to actively document pertinent clinical information into an electronic health records system, allowing the provider to spend less time with computers and more time with patients. Prior clinical experience has been shown to be related to success in medical school and is often used in the medical school selection process [4–7], but studies have mostly focused on other non-scribe clinical experiences. Data is needed to identify the potential benefits of scribe experience in medical school so that decisions for students and selection committees are evidence-based [8]. Even as the demand for well-trained physicians increases [9], acceptance into medical school continues to be an arduous task for many students, with only 41% of applicants being accepted each year [10]. In order to bolster their applications,
* William H. Hewlett [email protected] 1
Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine, Richmond, VA, USA
an increasing number of applicants (62.6% nationwide) have begun taking a “gap year” between undergraduate education and application to medical school in order to gain career (52.5%) or research (46.3%) experience [11]. The medical scribe role has become a popular gap year experience for pre-medical students. Given the nature of the job, a scribe experience might translate into measurable benefits during medical school. Scribes must quickly acquire familiarity with complex medical terminology in order to efficiently document clinical interactions, which could translate into greater familiarity with medical terminology in medical school and improved initial documentation skills, a core entrustable professional activity [7, 12]. Exposure to clinical conditions and disease states might also help recall
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